


chloe frazer's home remedy for a pouting partner

by chlodine



Series: from tumblr [3]
Category: Uncharted (Video Games)
Genre: F/F, WHO is surprised that there is no drama in this and its literally just fluff LMFAO
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-27
Updated: 2018-09-27
Packaged: 2019-07-18 07:16:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,315
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16113494
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chlodine/pseuds/chlodine
Summary: Nadine pours her heart and soul into their newest job, and when it crumbles to nothing in front of her, she looks like she’s struck between collapsing dramatically or throwing their saboteur off a cliff.She ends up doing both.





	chloe frazer's home remedy for a pouting partner

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Thecsquirrel](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thecsquirrel/gifts).



> prompt: ["you look like you need a hug."](http://chloedeckerr.tumblr.com/post/168319378801/requested-by-vanilleoerbayun-37-you-look-like)
> 
> Anyway this ones out to thecsquirrel whos the mvp of the chlodine fandom and also they make my day with the comments so its all abt passing on the Feel Good Juice. 2018 is the year for positivity, babes

****Nadine pours her heart and soul into their newest job, and when it crumbles to nothing in front of her, she looks like she’s struck between collapsing dramatically or throwing their saboteur off a cliff.

She ends up doing both. 

The snivelling bastard goes over the edge screaming, and Nadine’s legs give way from exhaustion, falling to the dirt with a low, rumbling groan. 

Chloe wordlessly squats down next to her partner, offering quiet comfort. 

It must be at least half an hour like this: the two of them keeping low, watching the rubble roll and dust settle beneath them. Sooty plumes disappear into the cloudy sky. Surrounded by this devastation, everything looks so monotone and so defeated.

Nadine’s body quakes and quivers like the string on a bow.

Finally, she looks over at Chloe, eyes dark and jaw clenched. There’s a cut above her eyebrow and grime clings to her skin. Chloe shrugs, wiping once down Nadine’s dirtied cheek, and extends a hand for Nadine to take. 

“Next time, love,” she says like a promise. 

It’s another second before Nadine slips her hand into Chloe’s, exhaling.

“Ja.” Nadine blinks, eyes flitting back to the aftermath. “Next time.” 

After that, Chloe books a 2 AM one-way flight to Brisbane. They end up fixing themselves up as best they can in an empty airport bathroom, standing side by side over adjacent sinks. 

She can sense Nadine’s sour mood, her figurative wounds as fresh as her physical, so she lets Nadine wallow in her flat for a couple of days. Chloe knows how she can get herself when one of her jobs doesn’t go as planned – and it’s worse this time because their plan was fucked sideways into the next century and Nadine had cared so, so much.

And Chloe cares about her partner which includes her mental health, so she gives Nadine her time. She finds that this whole “being considerate” thing isn’t as hard as she had thought it was.

On the third consecutive day of sulking, Chloe loops her arms with Nadine’s and declares that they go out for dinner. 

“Chinese, China?” she asks with an amused smile when Nadine steps out of the building, joining her on the sidewalk. 

Nadine twists her lips, frown deepening. “I want a steak.” 

Amiable, Chloe starts off in the direction of the closest steakhouse, a ten-minute stroll away. Nadine has no problem keeping up, and predictably, they end up being seated in under five minutes. 

They both get beers, a medium rare for Chloe, though Nadine ends up ordering a burger with a side of fries. Nadine’s strict diet (including many disgusting protein shakes) usually appals Chloe, but it must be an impromptu cheat day. 

There’s a spattering of conversation throughout their meal, and Nadine lets Chloe mooch fries off her plate, so Chloe considers the outing an overall success. 

“Wanna go for a walk?” Chloe asks before she pops a fry in her mouth, letting half of it stick out as she cuts a mess down her last chunk of steak. 

“Ja, okay.” Plate empty, Nadine leans back in her chair, slinging an arm over the empty one next to her, and watches while Chloe finishes off her steak. Nadine wrinkles her nose. “There’s gravy on your face.” 

“Wanna clean it up for me?”

“Are you five?”

“And a half,” she says, heartened by the small curve of Nadine’s lips. Chloe wipes her chin with a clean napkin, balls it up, and chucks it at Nadine. She catches it easily, grinning wider than she has in an entire week, and hails down a waiter for the cheque. 

After dishing out the cash for dinner, Chloe again leads them down the streets. This time, conversation flows easily. 

They trade embarrassing stories and regale each other with tales of old adventures. (Chloe laughs when Nadine gives her recount of Scotland and her bitter encounters with the Drake brothers.) 

For a while, they wander aimlessly in the yellow-orange glow of the streetlights. It’s only when Chloe walks past a surf shop that she realizes they’ve found their way to the coast. 

Nadine approaches a fenced section of the boardwalk and leans against it, staring into the blackness of the ocean. 

“Hey,” Chloe says, tapping Nadine’s arm, “I’ll be right back.”

There’s a mostly empty 24-hour convenience store across the street, and she spends a couple minutes sweeping her fingers over the shelves. Once she finishes paying for a pack of gum and two bottles of water, she returns to the boardwalk. 

A light breeze blows Nadine’s stray curls across her forehead making her eyes flutter shut, chin tipping up to enjoy the wind against her skin.

Her back is to the ocean, elbows jutting out over the wooden fence and arms defined under the sleeves of her t-shirt. Her lips are pursed, and there are shadows under her eyes from the streetlight.

Chloe stops a step away just as Nadine’s eyes open.

“You look like you need a hug.” 

The condensation on the bottles are cold on her fingertips, and she shivers.

Nadine raises an eyebrow at that, the crease between her brows smoothing over. “What makes you say that?” 

Chloe shrugs. She puts her bottle down on the ground and digs her fingers into her pocket. After Nadine downs a quarter of her drink and pops two pellets of gum in her mouth, she leaves her bottle next to Chloe’s. 

“You just look like it.” 

Nadine snorts.

They turn to the shore. It’s too dark to differentiate the sky from the ocean, but still, they stare.

Two cars drive by before Nadine tilts her body a little over the fence, balancing on her toes, and squints at Chloe.

“I’m sorry.” 

Caught off guard, Chloe can only frown dumbly at Nadine for a moment. “For what?” 

“For Morocco.” She sighs, hands balling up and digging her nails into her palms. “I wasted our time, led us on a useless job.” 

“Eh, things happen, love.” 

“Still, it  _shouldn’t_  have happened.” 

Chloe smiles kindly. "Come on, it wasn't your fault."

Stubborn, Nadine glowers out at the expanse. 

Reaching over, Chloe gently uncurls her fists and rests a reassuring hand on her forearm. “It’s fine, mate, swear on it. You weren’t the one triggering landmines left and right, you were just the person who cared enough not to.”

Neither of them says anything for a while. Nadine’s eyes flicker across Chloe’s face; her little smile, the loose strands of hair brushing against her cheeks, the crinkles at the corners of her eyes. 

Chloe moves suddenly, spreading her arms out, so she stands like a T. She grins and wiggles her fingers. “How ‘bout it, then?” 

Nadine laughs, shaking her head, and slowly wraps her arms around Chloe’s waist. She holds Chloe loosely at first, then stronger, gripping around her lower back. 

Likewise, Chloe slings her arms around Nadine and digs her fingers into the warmth of her back. She rubs a thumb over the little ruts of Nadine’s spine and tucks her nose into the crook of Nadine’s neck. She inhales lightly, the faint scent of clean laundry on Nadine’s shirt putting her at ease, and revels in the warmth and the  _solidness_  of Nadine. 

Nadine hums softly in content, blushing immediately after. Pulled flush against her, she can feel Chloe rumble with laughter. 

It’s picturesque: them, blanketed in the shuttering orange of a streetlight as the waves retreat into a deep blackness.

Chloe quells her disappointment when Nadine begins to pull away. Though, as if silently placating, she stills when they're only centimetres apart, arms still at Chloe’s hips. 

Chloe smiles and runs her hands up Nadine’s neck, jaw, cheek, until she can swipe the pad of her fingers over the scabbed-over cut on Nadine’s forehead. 

Nadine rests her cheek against Chloe’s palm and grins back, lopsided. “Next time?” 

“Next time.” 

 

**Author's Note:**

> will i get better at titling things? jury's still out! im Always on the lookout on how to get better at writing so lemme kno! this includes lil spelling and grammar mistakes bc its all abt constant editing in this house, lads
> 
> also the reason why im doing this 2 days in a row is bc the chlodine tag is making me super sad and also bc i dont wanna do real work so yes, dont expect this to happen again but dont not expect it to happen again skdfjhdskjfhjdks


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